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Modeling and Simulation

Researchers frequently require a quantitative understanding of the likely consequences of different actions before they can advise decisionmakers and design effective policies. RAND develops and uses statistical, econometric, and other exploratory models and simulations to analyze the potential outcomes of different policies in a range of areas such as transportation usage, health care, patient safety, and military campaigns.

Commentary

AVs Could Improve Transportation Access in 'Transit Deserts'

More large U.S. cities are seeing their outer reaches turn into transit deserts, where demand for transportation vastly exceeds supply. Connecting public transit systems with automated vehicles, whether in ride-sharing or shuttle services, could be a solution.

May 31, 2019
Journal Article

Journal Article

Evaluation of Walk and Bicycle Demand Modeling Practice

An evaluation of the current state of research and practice in regional pedestrian and bicycle demand modelling for both commute and noncommute trips. The results of the study were connected to planning needs and practice.

May 16, 2019
Journal Article

Journal Article

External Threat, Internal Rivalry, and Alliance Formation

Coalitions of rivals, while formidable against common threats, may find it difficult or impossible to avoid struggles among themselves even if they share an enemy.

May 15, 2019
Report

Tool Created to Help Multinational Companies Assess Risk of Bribery When Doing Business in Foreign Countries

Corruption can hinder global business investment — particularly in emerging markets — but multinational companies often have difficulty assessing the business bribery risk in other countries. A new tool, called the TRACE Matrix, can help.

May 13, 2019
Report

Report

OCEANS 17 Tabletop Exercise: Findings and Recommendations

In December 2017, the RAND Corporation conducted a tabletop exercise on air operations across the boundaries between geographic combatant commands. This report describes the exercise's design, key insights from our analysis, and recommendations.

May 9, 2019
Commentary

Finding the Real Will of the People

It's not surprising that the British Parliament is struggling to find a solution to the Brexit impasse. That's because the 2016 vote revealed nothing about the sort of Brexit people actually wanted. When researchers asked Brits to choose between four options in 2017, there was no obvious winner.

Apr 30, 2019
Report

Report

Do Differing Analyses Change the Decision? Using a Game to Assess Whether Differing Analytic Approaches Improve Decisionmaking

In this report, RAND researchers use a structured comparison game to examine the value proposition of different analytic inputs (scenario-based versus Robust Decision Making) on a sample U.S. Department of Defense decision about force structure.

Apr 8, 2019
News Release

Younger Americans Much More Likely to Have Been Arrested Than Previous Generations; Increase Is Largest Among Whites and Women

Americans under the age of 26 are much more likely to have been arrested than Americans born in previous decades, with the increase in arrest rates occurring most rapidly among white Americans and women. The rising rate of arrests and convictions is associated with a variety of negative ramifications.

Feb 25, 2019
Report

Report

Conceptual Design for a Multiplayer Security Force Assistance Strategy Game

The authors explain the conceptual underpinnings and basic rules for a RAND-designed security force assistance strategy game. The game is a tool to explore the potential benefits and risks of different security force assistance strategies.

Feb 7, 2019
Report

The U.S. Department of Defense's Planning Process: Components and Challenges

This report explores the current defense planning process used by the U.S. Department of Defense, with a focus on how scenarios are developed and employed to support defense planning.

Feb 4, 2019
Report

Report

How can crowd behaviour modelling be used to prevent and respond to violence and antisocial behaviour at Qatar 2022?

This case study explores the potential for crowd behaviour modelling to inform crowd management strategies to minimise the risk of violent or antisocial behaviour taking place during the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and to reduce harm if it does take place.

Dec 11, 2018
Report

Report

Evaluating Methods to Estimate the Effect of State Laws on Firearm Deaths: A Simulation Study

As part of the RAND Corporation's Gun Policy in America initiative, the authors use simulations to assess the performance of a wide range of statistical models used to estimate the effects of state gun policies on firearm deaths.

Dec 10, 2018
Journal Article

Journal Article

Surface Heat Assessment for Developed Environments: Probabilistic Urban Temperature Modeling

We describe how fine resolution simulations of historic extreme heat events are generated and used to train a probabilistic spatio-temporal model of the temperature distribution in an urban area.

Nov 28, 2018
Journal Article

Journal Article

Surface Heat Assessment for Developed Environments: Optimizing Urban Temperature Monitoring

A variety of metrics are used to optimize the placement of temperature measures to best support decision-making for monitoring and responding to extreme heat risk. This optimal sensor placement methodology is demonstrated for Pittsburgh.

Nov 27, 2018
Journal Article

Journal Article

Hidden-Model Processes for Adaptive Management Under Uncertain Climate Change

This paper proposes a set of optimization procedures based on the Markov decision process (MDP) framework to support decision making depending on the assumed learning rate.

Nov 27, 2018
Blog

RAND Hosts Forum on 21st-Century Warfare Honoring Roberta Wohlstetter

National security experts, flag officers, and decisionmakers attended the Roberta Wohlstetter Forum on National Security at RAND's Washington office on October 24. The featured speakers, moderators, organizers, donor, and namesake for the event were all women.

Nov 26, 2018
Commentary

Building a Pipeline of Wargaming Talent: A Two-Track Solution

How does the Department of Defense imagine the future of war and make long-term investments to confront the challenges ahead? On issues ranging from potential conflicts with Russia to the future of transportation and logistics, senior leaders have increasingly turned to wargames to imagine potential futures.

Nov 15, 2018
Report

Report

Evaluating interventions that prevent or counter violent extremism: A practical guide

This document provides an overview of data collection methods and evaluation designs suitable for evaluating interventions and programmes designed to prevent and counter violent extremism and radicalisation.

Oct 30, 2018
Report

Report

Realigning the Stars: A Methodology for Reviewing Active Component General and Flag Officer Requirements

The authors developed and employed a methodology to review general and flag officer requirements in the U.S. military, used results to identify opportunities to eliminate or downgrade positions, and explored the implications of reductions.

Oct 22, 2018
Project

British People Prefer a Soft Brexit, If Any

The political landscape of the UK has changed dramatically in the wake of the Brexit referendum. Since last year, support for a deal based on membership of the European Economic Area has increased from 38 to 43 percent. Even Leave voters are shifting to a softer Brexit.

Oct 11, 2018

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RAND Topic:
Modeling and Simulation

Topic Synonyms:
Mathematical Modeling;
Modelling

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